Lionheart

Review by Thomas Glorieux:

As always the success of a movie starts with the director, but the composer is as anyone of the project equally important for the outcome of the picture. And Goldsmith was that for a lot of pictures of Franklin J. Schaffner. Their strongest and most successful results both in their careers are Planet of the Apes, Patton, Papillon, Islands in the Stream and The Boys From Brazil. Lionheart marks their seventh and sadly last project together. Still, it portrays that Goldsmith has a lot of inspiration when he worked closely to the side of Schaffner, and Lionheart offers themes worthy to recall in an instant. The score was released in two albums but found its way to a Limited Edition album due to the kindness of Var鋊e Sarabande, discovering that a Goldsmith score of this magnitude deserves to be heard for all its worth. Yet, sadly people aren't talking enough of this soundtrack the way it should have been.

The main aspect of Lionheart's grandeur at the end is the amazing theme of the main character, Robert alias Eric Stoltz in the movie. It receives the heroic treatment once in a while but mostly it is calm. It receives the right performance in 'The Banner' and the massive 'King Richard', portraying if Goldsmith finds inspiration in the movie he can deliver it rightfully so with an orchestra. Goldsmith uses leitmotifs, one for the Dark Knight in 'Children in Bondage' and 'Forest Hunt', for the love theme first discovered fully in 'Robert and Blanche' and last but not least for 'Mathilda', a theme for the female crusader, followed by some great action / heroic music from Goldsmith. All these receive their prime time in the last track. Still, the moment of this score varies greatly from frenetic action in 'Failed Knight' and 'Final Fight' to the playful and simply fun mix heard in 'The Road from Paris' and 'The Wrong Flag'. Its easy to see why Goldsmith is so loved by so many people, his tremendous feeling he has for making a film better, his undeniable knack for coming up with some of the best themes ever written, his talent for bringing film music that inspires the film and the people listening to it, Goldsmith does film music justice, like any other great composer should.

People seemed to miss the opportunity to buy this score, because I hardly ever hear a word about it, positive word to be correct. Lionheart is one of Goldsmith's most enjoyable and creative scores when it comes to entertainment, feel and class. The way Goldsmith weaves the theme after the other in a fitting and enjoyable design is only a pure signal of why he remains such a god in my eyes. The score Lionheart really starts to enjoy the listener from the sixth track, when people have figured out the themes, the several leitmotifs and simply the fun that Goldsmith has interwoven in his compositional actions. Lionheart can only be described as a necessity for Goldsmith fans all over the world, in design only the bold power of First Knight overshadows it. So sword and sorcery may ask for something much bolder (Conan the Barbarian) but this is no chop of head number one and continue to count the number, in regards this remains a movie for young adults and it portrays the heroic but playful entertaining sounds of a man to give the people what they want, entertainment from start to finish. Lionheart remains one of Goldsmith's most creative packages in ages and can only be described as a gift if you find it for reasonable prices. A classic to die for.

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Tracks

Single Disc

1. The Ceremony (2.49)

2. Failed Knight (3.19)

3. The Circus (3.07)

4. Robert And Blanche (3.48)

5. Children In Bondage (5.01)

6. The Road From Paris (2.04) Excellent Track

7. The Lake (3.37)

8. The Banner (5.58) Excellent Track

9. The Castle (1.25)

10. Mathilda (5.57) Excellent Track

11. The Wrong Flag (3.16)

12. The Dress (2.22)

13. Forest Hunt (7.44) Excellent Track

14. Final Fight (3.13)

15. King Richard (8.34) Excellent Track

Total Length: 63.05

The use of artwork or photos is posted for non profitable reasons

=== Link to Composer Site: Jerry Goldsmith ===